Trunk



(No Model.) 7

W. SIMON.

TRUNK; No.'273',175. Patented Feb. 27, 188-3.

o a o n n Q u V Q IHVENTOR UNITED STATES PATENT Ori ice,

. WILLIAM SIMON, OE NEWARK, NEW JERSEY.

TRUNK.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 273,175, dated February27, 1883.

I Application filed Octobcr 4, 1882. (No model.)

To all whom it may concerh:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM SIMON, of the cityof Newark, county ofEssex, and State of New Jersey, have invented a new and usefulImprovement in Trunks, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvementsin the construction of trunks; andthe objects of my invention are to make trunks stronger and lighter andat the same time cheaper than they have heretofore been made.

Heretofore the cheaper gradesof trunks have been made of board, canvas,pasteboard, tin, leather, or similar articles strengthened with strapsof hoop and sheet iron nailed around the corners and by straightorslightly-curved slats of wood along the top and sides, and by straightcleats of wood along the bottom, clamped around the corners with ironclamps, and a valance of iron has been nailed around the base of thelid.Trunks of this form are liable to break by reason of the lack ofelasticity in the iron bands, especially where the trunk is thrown downviolently upon'the corner oredge.

I attain the objects of my invention by the employment of double andsingle bent elbows of hickory or other tough and elastic wood bentsubstantially at right angles, with the grain running from end to end,so formed into permanent shape by steaming orother well-known processthat the angles of the wood shall be at the corners or edges of thetrunk, and the straight or slightly-arched portions shall form thevalance and the slats and cleats and other strengthening parts, ashereinafter described. The advantages of this arrangement are,first,that the trunk so formed has great strength, by reason of the elasticityof the wood, both at the angles or elbows and between them, and byreason ofa peculiar lapping of the elbows upon one another at the endsof the trunk, as hereinafter described; second, that my trunk is muchlighter than one with iron bands, because the wood is lighter than iron,and the extra strength of the construction allows the use of muchlighter material for the body, and also because there are very fewnails, rivets, or screws required to hold the wood; third, that my trunkis much cheaper, both by reason of the light material and small numberof nails, and by reason of wood being cheaper than iron, and the laborof nailing my trunk being about one-tenth as much as in the trunksheretofore made, and because the iron clamps at the corners may bedispensed with.

In theaccompanying drawings, Figurel represents in perspective a trunkcontaining one form of my invention. Fig. 2 shows an end view of thesame. Fig. 3 shows in perspective a trunk with both double and singlebent elbows arrangedinasomewhatdifierent manner.

Similar letters refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

A is the body of the trunk, constructed of any suitable material, andstrengthened entirely with double-bent elbows. B is the top of the same,strengthened in like manner.

0 is a double-bent elbow, forming the valance by means of a rod ofhickory or other suitable wood bent into shape and attached to the lowerpart of the top by screws or nails, so as to run around the front andends, and the back also, if desired.

D D D are double-bent elbows of wood, passing over the top of the trunkand screwed upon it and its sides, forming both side slats and top slatsand the clamps between-them, thus holding together the top and sides. Itthe trunk is to have an arched top, these supporters D D D should bearched to correspond. V

E E E are double-bent elbows of wood,passing under the bottom of thetrunk and screwed upon it, and its sides forming the cleats and the sideslats and the clamps between them, thus holding together the bottom andsides of the trunk. Upon the ends of the top of the trunk are thedouble-bent elbows F F, preferably also of wood, and with thedouble-bent elbows D D lapping over them above and fitting closelyaround them, respectively, the bent elbows F F being screwed or nailedfirmly to theends of the top of the trunk; and, if desired, the bentelbowsD D may be nailed upon the bent elbows F F; or the bent elbows Dand F may be made of a single piece of wood grooved or otherwise formedto receive the edge of the trunk. 1n like manner secured at the ends ofthe bottom of the trunk are the doublebent elbows G'G, preferably alsoof wood, and with the double-bent elbows E E lapping over them andfitting closely around them, respectively. These bent elbows F F and G Gserve to strengthen the ends of the IOC trunk and attach them firmly tothe top and bottom with a strong and elastic support. This supportenables the trunk to resist the strain incident upon throwing the trunkviolently upon the corner or edge. To fasten these bent elbows upon thetrunk, there is required only from one-tenth to one-quarter of thenumber of nails, screws, or rivets heretofore demanded when sheet-ironor iron bands with iron clamps were used. By the use of these elbows ofbent wood the body ofthe trunk 7 may be made of wicker-work or otherfragile material, and yet be sufficiently strong to resist violentusage. The double-bent elbow F may also be attached to the end and topof the trunk on the inside, so as to be entirely concealed. Instead ofthe bent elbows F and G upon the ends of the trunk, the ends themselvesmay be made, though less advantageously, ofa rigid material, such aswood. The bent elbows D and E will then be a sufficient protection.

Another form of my invention is shown in Fig.3. Here the valance G is inthe same form as in Fig. 1, as are also the double-bent elbows D D and'EE but the ends of the trunk are secured by means of the single-bentelbows S S and H 11 above and below, respectively. The bent elbows SSrun from the valance upward over the edge of the top and then along thetop as far as the double-bent elbow D thus clamping together the top'andend; and in like manner the bent elbowsH H run from the valance aroundthe lower edge of the bottom as far as the double-bent elbow E, andserve the purpose of cleats and slats and clamps to secure the ends tothe bottom.

It is evident that. the double-bent elbows and single-bent elbows may beattached to the body of the trunk in other places than those indicatedin the drawings.

Tin or steel clamps or protectors may of course in addition be placedover the corners of the elbows to prevent wear; but I do not regard themas necessary.

What I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. A trunk having firmly attached to and in contact with the outside ofthe same at the angles or corners thereof elbows of bent wood,substantially as and for the purposes described.

2. A trunk provided at its outside angles with double elbows ofoverlapping bent wood firmly attached to and in contact with the outsidedf such trunk, substantially as and for the purposes described.

WILLIAM SIMON.

Witnesses:

J. E. HINDON HYDE, HARRY E. LEIBOLD.

